ARTIST

393with Colleen Gnos words

“I decided that I was going to be an artist when I was four-years-old. When I went off to college, I wanted to learn as much as I could about everything because I felt that it would enhance my art. I felt that the more I knew about philosophy and astronomy and zoology, the better it would enhance my vision and what I wanted to communicate with my artwork.”

I learned to surf when I was twenty-one and it just took over everything. I wanted to live near the coast, I wanted to be in the ocean, I wanted to paint things that brought me a lot of joy. Mygrandfather was a diver here in the 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s and that has also inspired much of my work. They used to take me out on the tugboats when I was a little girl. I’ve just always loved the ocean.

Last year I thought I had a torn meniscus in my knee. They ran some tests and told me I actually had cancer, and they thought it would be best if they removed my leg right away. It was a rare form and I was very lucky that it hadn’t spread to the rest of my body. They were able to save my leg through very aggressive chemotherapy treatment. ”

I don’t know how people survive cancer without art, family and community. I can only hope that everyone with a cancer diagnosis will pick up a paintbrush, a pencil, some clay—no matter if they have never created a piece of art in their life, or are a professional artist. That experience, which I now consider a gift, explored the therapeutic aspects of creating and viewing art, and has fueled a different way for me to work, and to view my own work. Art carried me through my treatments and all the emotional ups and downs that come with being very ill. I was only well enough to make it to my studio for a few hours between treatments, but I can’t explain how it changed my mood, my outlook, everything. I sketched constantly, living in my own world of beauty that I created. I also began to sculpt clay as a way to express myself and relieve the anger and frustration. It replaced the anger with joy.